Month: January 2017

Top veteran quarterbacks don’t come available very often. The last one was in 2012, when Peyton Manning left the Indianapolis Colts for the Denver Broncos.

When one does hit the market, every team that even thinks it might have a need at quarterback has to at least investigate.

The last time Tony Romo played a full season without missing a game was in 2012.

That’s why this year, with the Dallas Cowboys dangling Tony Romo, the Kansas City Chiefs need to weigh the risks and rewards of making the move against those of keeping the status quo.

It won’t be an easy decision, mainly because Romo has much wear and tear on a body that turns 37 in April. He hasn’t played a full season since 2014, and anyone who says he can survive one in 2017 is just guessing.

“It’s hard to say,” Berdych said, “but definitely it was very impressive. I was not so surprised. He knows what he’s doing. If he wasn’t able to compete on the highest level, he wouldn’t be here.”

The entire match ran exactly 90 minutes — the fifth-shortest full-term match so far this fortnight. On Thursday, the now-departed Novak Djokovic and Denis Istomin played an 85-minute first set.

“I had no expectations, really,” Federer said. “Things were going well in practice, but I’ve never been the practice king. I was winning tons of sets, but I wasn’t sure that was a good thing or not.”

While Federer looked a tad sluggish in his first two matches, with a balky backhand and a tentative serve, he was unnaturally smooth against Berdych. There were classic half-volleys, a gorgeous drop shot and that classic backhand down the line. Oh, and he moved with that old cat-like quickness, too.

As the Warriors brace for the challenging week ahead, they’ve been resting at home since Thursday night’s drubbing of Detroit. That game featured Golden State’s ninth 40-point quarter of the season, including two in one game against the Lakers. Golden State is now 8-0 when it posts 40-plus points in a single quarter, 12-0 when it totals 25 or more fast-break points, 13-0 when Draymond Green has at least 10 assists, 13-0 when Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson all score at least 20 points, and 17-0 when it sinks at least 13 3-pointers as a team. As for all of the schedule talk, no one is even thinking about Sunday’s visit to Orlando, a game that will be plenty tricky in itself thanks to a dreaded noon ET tipoff for the West Coasters.Joe Vitale Game JerseyJared Crick Game Jersey Derrick Rose obviously isn’t wrong when he points to the Knicks’ defense as a key culprit in their 2-10 slide. When we dared to check Sunday morning, New York was 25th in defensive efficiency, 29th in points off turnovers (14.0 PPG), 25th in deflections and 28th in charges taken. The problem here is that the Knicks are two points worse per 100 possessions with Rose on the floor than when he sits … as well as the fact you have to question why he’s the one trying to deliver big messages and/or challenges to his coach in the media when he couldn’t bring himself to text a soul in the organization last Monday when he disappeared for 24 hours on a game day. To the surprise of pretty much no one, these Knicks have used up all the goodwill engendered by their 14-10 start and have devolved into the usual daily soap opera Gothamites have come to expect. And now it’s Melo in the crosshairs.?

The Jazz were 0-9 this season after falling behind by at least 15 points before Saturday night, when the Magic squandered a seemingly healthy cushion in the SLC to waste one of the best games we’ve seen from Elfrid Payton (28 points, 9 rebounds and 9 assists) and squelch any momentum that might have started to percolate after Nikola Vucevic (30 points) returned to the starting lineup to spark an unexpected triumph in Portland. With Evan Fournier ailing anew and playoff hope realistically slipping away in Year 1 under Frank Vogel, we await the trade or two most rival teams expect Orlando to make to unclog its frontcourt logjam.

Aaron Rodgers, Packers: I know this is hard to imagine, but Aaron Rodgers was great in 2015 and will be great again in 2016 … unless he loses a finger in a sword fight.

Mens DeMar DeRozan Jersey Tom Savage, Texans: Draftniks have at least a dozen “I told you so” columns floating around in their head, just waiting for the ultimate sleeper pick to finally break out. Their legendary patience will certainly be rewarded in 2016.

Andrew Luck, Colts: We don’t need some complicated stats to tell us that Luck is still one of the best young QBs in the league and will be for years to come. But there’s only so much one man can do with Ryan Grigson building the rest of the roster. If this were based on humility alone, he’d be No. 1.

Insiders have had more details to share about talks between Thomas and the Broncos. The latest has Thomas rejecting a deal with $40 million guaranteed. That’s as good of an indication we’re going to get that these two situations aren’t going to get resolved by 4 p.m. ET. Not long after that Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported that a deal between Thomas and the Broncos isn’t likely to happen and communication between the two sides may be finished.

Mens Dominic Raiola Jersey In a world where Mike Wallace has a $60 million deal, something like a six-year deal worth $90 million, averaging out to $15 million per year, seems like a fair price for Bryant and Thomas. The guaranteed money is the number that matters. If they could agree to $40 million in guarantees that would put both players in rare company — among non-quarterbacks, only two players, Johnson and Ndamukong Suh, currently have more guaranteed money in their contracts.

If they can’t get at least that much guaranteed, well, there’s really only one thing they can do: hold out as long as it’s feasible to do so. At least we’d still get to see both players for the last six weeks of the season.

Context: In those days, the Super Bowl pitted the champions of two independent leagues, the AFL and the NFL. Namath’s New York Jets (AFL) were 19-point underdogs to the Baltimore Colts (NFL) at a time when it was widely assumed the AFL was the inferior league. Three days before the game, Namath accepted an award from the Miami Touchdown Club. According to the Pro Football Hall of Fame account, a Colts fan yelled to him: “Hey, Namath, we’re going to kick your ass.” Namath responded: “I’ve got news for you. We’re going to win the game. I guarantee it.”

Backup quarterback Tom Savage, who started the Texansâ€™ final two regular-season games, did not impress in his limited body of work this season. While Savage completed 63 percent of his passes compared to Osweilerâ€™s 59 percent, he failed to throw a touchdown pass and led the offense to just 12 points in his only full game, against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 16.Limited Kids Nick Folk Jersey
The Texans have some cap room but have several players they could sign to extensions, including wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins and veteran left tackle Duane Brown, both of whom are free agents after the 2017 season. Cornerback A.J. Bouye is set for free agency after a career year, and Houston will likely make a concerted effort to keep him as well.Authentic Womens Kony Ealy Jersey
The good news for the Texans is their defense could very easily get even better next season. Three-time Defensive Player of the Year J.J. Watt should be back after two back surgeries in 2016, which will add to one of the leagueâ€™s best front sevens. Former first-round pick Kevin Johnson will also return from foot surgery to help the cornerbacks. Outside of potentially losing Bouye in free agency, every other key defensive contributor is under contract for next season.

The key to the Packers’ offense against the Saints is to get their newer players more reps and gameday experience. Luckily for Green Bay, with Aaron Rodgers under center, it has a seasoned vet to establish a good rapport with his new receivers ahead of the season, even if Rodgers won’t see the field during the last preseason game.

On the other side of the ball, quarterback Drew Brees will also forgo any playing time on Thursday, and the duties will instead fall with Luke McCown, Garrett Grayson and Ryan Griffin.

Early in training camp, it looked like McCown and Griffin were neck-and-neck for the backup job, but Griffin only played for 42 seconds against the Houston Texans and managed to throw an interception in that short time. Now it looks like Griffin has fallen below rookie Grayson in the depth chart.

The most disappointing thing is how well he was playing at the time of the injury. That Seahawks game was probably hands down his best overall game as a pro. He was all over the place. He missed several sacks on Russell Wilson, but hell, so does everybody else. Most importantly, he found a way to get Wilson on the ground for the third sack of his career and his constant pressure on other plays forced Wilson into several errant throws.

But all that momentum seemed to be erased by the hip injury.

Yeah, not so fast Holmes.

Ingram wasn’t quite as explosive off the ball when he came back for the final seven weeks of the season, which is predictable since he was coming off the hip injury. But he still did quite a few good things to close out the year, including three sacks in the last four weeks of the season. It’s also worth noting that the Chargers thought enough of him that he was inserted back into the starting lineup the moment he was physically ready and eligible to play. Just like 2013, Ingram still was able to generate at least some momentum heading into the offseason.

Jaguars coach Doug Marrone made nearly a clean sweep on the defensive side of the ball on Tuesday, retaining only defensive coordinator Todd Wash, defensive assistant Mike Rutenberg and defensive quality control coach Dan Shamash from Gus Bradley’s staff, league sources told ESPN.

Monte Kiffin, who joined the staff as a defensive assistant last March, is among those coaches not retained. Kiffin,76, had been assisting Bradley off and on for eight months on an unpaid basis and was a consultant during the team’s search for a defensive coordinator before being hired.

Game Kids Virgil Green Jersey Wash just finished his first season as a defensive coordinator and the Jaguars made significant improvement. They finished sixth in total defense, 19th in rush defense, fifth in pass defense, eighth in third-down defense and 25th in scoring defense. In the previous three seasons under coordinator Bob Babich, the Jaguars ranked 31st in scoring defense, 31st in third-down defense and 29th in total defense.

Said rookie linebacker De’Vondre Campbell: â€œIt meant a lot coming from a guy who has been in the league for 15 years and has been to countless Pro Bowls and to two Super Bowls. He’s been through it all and seen it all. He’s reached the ultimate prize. He’s won a Super Bowl. He’s been there.â€

Game Kids Tom Brady Jersey If this year’s version of the Falcons is going to get there, they need to take care of business first on Saturday. That will include containing Russell Wilson and his ability to make plays with his feet, stopping a running game expected to feature Thomas Rawls as the primary back and possibly third-down threat C.J. Prosise and limiting the big-play ability of receivers such Doug Baldwin, tight end Jimmy Graham and the suddenly emerging Paul Richardson.

Hamstring issues have haunted Beckham in the past. He missed the first four games of his 2014 rookie season to rehab a hamstring injury that had hindered him throughout the preceding offseason.

Should Beckham miss significant playing time, it’d be arguably be the biggest blow yet to an offense that has already had to deal with several significant injuries. Fellow wideout Victor Cruz has yet to play this season due to a calf injury. Tight end Daniel Fells is out Sunday after undergoing surgery to stave off a staph infection.

Credit to the Browns for making the call to start McCown, and hey, credit to McCown for playing so well. His last two games have been impressive and he’s given Cleveland a little bit of new life on offense. Hopefully he can keep it going.Limited Mens Theo Riddick Jersey
After Sunday’s game against the Ravens, it’s hard to imagine those chants will persist. Browns left tackle Joe Thomas was asked about McCown’s performance against the Ravens and joked that the team should “put in Johnny.”

If the NFL flatly denied Williams the opportunity to honor someone important in his life, then it was incredibly stupid.

The Packers are undefeated so far this season and he is the main reason why. His performance against the 49ers was short of the highlight reel that he displayed when he frustrated and confused a talent-rich Kansas City Chiefs defense the Monday before, but it encapsulated what makes his existence impossible.Elite Kids Michael Schofield Jersey
On the first drive of the game, with the Packers in the red zone, Rodgers got the ball on second-and-8 with a little over nine minutes remaining in the first quarter. Even in shotgun, the pocket collapses almost as soon as he receives the snap and takes a three-step drop. A three-man rush envelopes Rodgers in a display of pure power and machismo supremacy.

Sowell was out for several weeks, and Fant took over at left tackle. Because he hadn’t followed football, he didn’t know the reputations of the players he faced, so he wasn’t intimidated. He showed off his speed and power. In a road win over New England, he played almost flawlessly. In other games, though, his performance varied from average to awful.

Things were too new, too fast, too violent. One ranking placed him among the worst 10 offensive linemen in the league. Nonetheless, Cable and Carroll kept him at left tackle.

“Everything says this guy is going to be a starter for seven to 10 years,” Kirchner says. “Is his upside All-Pro? I think it could be. People look at him now and say, ‘No way.’ There are teams that would not pull the trigger and would never play him. That’s not us. Now we just have to be patient. He has now played 20 times more snaps than he had in his entire lifetime. And he is doing it in the NFL.Jeremy Langford Womens JerseyJason Kidd Womens Jersey Especially now. After many years on shaky ground â€“ in eight seasons in Miami, Wake has had six head coaches â€“ the Dolphins finally seem to have a solid foundation in place under Gase, who had a strong opening act. On Oct. 16, the Dolphins defeated the visiting Steelers, 30-15, to begin their run to a playoff berth. In his first start, Wake was credited with one-half sack.

That game launched the Dolphins and Wake to where they are now: with the 12 teams competing for a Super Bowl championship. For the Dolphins, the next challenge is to win their first postseason game since the 2000 season. Theyâ€™ll have to do it on the road, making the task that much tougher.

Thatâ€™s why itâ€™s good the Dolphins can follow Wake. No one on the roster has more experience with clearing big hurdles. But even if Miami pulls off a surprise, donâ€™t expect Wake to say, â€œI told you so.â€ Because as Wake knows better than most, actions speak louder than words.

Jason Reid is the senior NFL writer at The Undefeated. He enjoys watching sports, especially any games involving his son and daughter.

Eddie Lack hasn’t played in almost two months due to a combination of performance, injury, and illness. For Jorge Alves to get the call to back up in an NHL game was phenomenal and heart-warming, truly a story for the ages, and one that Canes fans should carry with them forever.

Even if Lack had been available he would have been coming into Saturday’s game against the Lightning from a long layoff, and it probably wouldn’t have affected the outcome. But while Ward is 5-2-0 in back-to-back games over the last year, three games in four days with travel is a tough grind on the entire Denver Broncos Authentic Jersey team, and the starting goaltender isn’t typically asked to shoulder that entire burden.

Now they’re looking for a low-cost starting pitcher (they Dez Bryant Game Jersey could wait out the Jason Hammel market), a reliever, and a utilityman. The Royals have some interest in bringing back Luke Hochevar, but are unsure when he’ll be able to return from thoracic outlet syndrome surgery in August.

If Cafardo is right, that is some good news for Royals fans. The Wade Davis trade will be the only deal that moves a veteran member of the core. It also means that despite Dayton Moore’s public pronouncements that he likes the starting rotation depth, the team is still looking to add pitchers.

Currently the rotation would feature Danny Duffy, Ian Kennedy, Yordano Ventura, and Jason Vargas. Other options would include Mike Minor, Matt Strahm, Chris Young, and Josh Staumount. The starting pitching free agent market has been notoriously weak, but there are a few options out there that could be upgrades at a reasonable price.

After dominating the Indianapolis Colts in Week 14, the Jacksonville Jaguars climbed to 5-8 and just one game behind the 6-7 Colts and 6-7 Houston Texans. With three weeks left, that puts the Jaguars right in the thick of the race, but actually getting in is easier than it looks.

Thanks to losses to both the Colts and the Texans earlier in the year and a poor record in divisional play, the Jaguars don’t have the advantage in the tiebreaker over either team. So the Jaguars would have to earn a better record than both teams to get in and that’s made tougher by the fact that the Colts and Texans play each other in Week 15.

Ideally for the Jaguars, the Colts and Texans would tie on Sunday, but if that doesn’t happen then Jacksonville will have no choice but to win out to give itself a chance. The Jaguars haven’t strung together four consecutive wins since 2007, but that’s almost definitely necessary to get in. If they can, this is the most realistic scenario that hands the AFC South over to Jacksonville.

Like the Cowboys, the Jaguars would be a division winner if things went right and that would mean Jacksonville hosting a playoff game for the first time since 1999.

With three weeks left to play, the concern for both the Cincinnati Bengals and Denver Broncos is a first-round bye. Both teams are 10-3 and just one game behind the New England Patriots for the No. 1 seed, but neither team has clinched a spot in the playoffs. While it’s impossible for both the Bengals and Broncos to be left out of the postseason field, especially with the two teams playing each other in Week 16, there’s still a chance that hijinks could keep one out.

Both Denver and Cincinnati can clinch in Week 15 with a win, so they can put the doomsday scenarios to bed sooner rather than later, but if either team loses out then there’s a chance things could get hairy.